Elements I - 20th to 24th Dec 2014 - Aorang Studio, Kolkata 
Elements II - 1st to 5th April 2015 - I AM, Kolkata
​Elements III - 10th June to 5th July 2015 - National Museum, New Delhi

THE IDEA
In December 2014, Ruchira Das along with the help of other artists gave shape to an idea that she had conceived of; Elements - a sensorial journey for children where they derive an experience from their own imagination and perception while engaging with various elements and textures and using all their senses. Elements emerged as a personal response to what one observes around in an urban environment - the fact that the child's tactile world shrinks as they move from a kindergarten / montessori to a regular school, that they spend most of their time in enclosed spaces and are always being told what to do.
Elements was meant to provide an aesthetically designed tactile environment that would broaden a child's imagination and heightened their sense of perception through creative exploration. They were free to stay for as long as they want in their own space, with minimal adult intervention.
There were no pre-requisites. All children needed to bring is what they have aplenty: their natural curiosity.  

THE TEAM
Elements saw the coming together of several artists who have the same basic beliefs, firstly that children are thinking feeling beings who are capable of as much, if not more depth, and understanding as an adult . Secondly, the arts are essentially subtle sensorial experiences that enhance a child’s ability to experience her/his world to the fullest. This exhibition thus involves artists who work with soundscapes and not just music, with materials and textures, not just puppets, with concepts and beliefs and not just performances.
The people who have worked on the various editions of Elements are:

• Ruchira Das - founded Think Arts to bring imaginative experiences for children. Elements is the first interactive exhibition for children, conceptualised by her.
• The Katkatha Puppet Arts Trust- Is a puppet theatre trust from New Delhi and its members Anurupa Roy, Shravan Heguddu, Raghuvendra are the designers of the exhibition and  co-creators of the art works seen in Elements. 
• Subhagata Singha - is a music composer / producer and Sound Designer from Kolkata. He is an ex-student of St. Xavier’s Collegiate School and St. Xavier’s College (with a B.Sc. degree in Mass Communication). He has worked on several musical plays with schools, as music director and instructor. He has also created tracks for several serials, films and ad films. He created an interactive soundscape for children in Elements I & II.
• Cynthia Siegel - has a wide and varied experience of working with clay, as sculptor, potter, and teacher.  She lives and works in Santa Cruz, California, USA, and was in India as a 2014-2015 Fulbright-Nehru Academic and Professional Excellence Award Scholar. She devised the Clay Room in the first edition of Elements. Cynthia writes about her experience with Elements 
• Rajat Mallick - designed the instruments used in the The Room of Sounds in Elements III. A professional musician and a music teacher, he has worked on several ‘sounds in education’ projects and is involved with music therapy projects too. He has a deep interest in making easy to play musical instruments from materials commonly found.
• Maura Hurley -  is an art teacher at Shikshamitra, an educational resource centre in Kolkata and founder, Mustard Seeds, an independent project supporting organizations working with marginalized communities, artisans & artists, and the disabled. She set up the Junk Sculpture in Elements II
• Prarthana Hazra - completed her studies in fine arts from Kala Bhavan, Viswa Bharati University, Santiniketan. She has a keen interest on working with children and making illustrations for children’s books. She initiated the sculpure at Elements III which children then built together

THE RESPONSE
The response from the children was overwhelming. It was most heartening to see that there were several of them who came back on other days to repeat the journey. When it was hosted at the National Museum Delhi, more than 2200 children attended the exhibition in 23 days.
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From children:
It was a thrilling experience! I would love to come back here again soon. I loved the clay part. It was fun to feel freezing water plainly, with stone, with flowers and also with sponge and lumps. I felt the straw to be ticklish. I would love to come back.
- Shreya, 9+

I really liked my experience at Elements. It was an amazing journey, that is why I went twice. The first room was filled with different types of boxes and cupboards. The next room was a maze to the next room. The next room was a clay room. It had a big box of clay, I made a statue. Then there was an open space where there were small boxes on which you had to walk on. I have never been to a workshop like this! - Sporshi, 10+
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I loved my experience in Elements. I liked it so much I did it twice. I went through a maze, walked through ice, water, hay and sand. I made clay models. I had lots of fun. Thank you a lot Elements. - Devanganna, 9

From adults:
It's a very unusual experience. Reminded me of my kid days when we lived near a hill and went to a school with all kinds of rooms and backyards. Exploring all the time!! - Sudeshna Sinha, Teacher Trainer & Education Consultant

This is fantastic and it should be a permanent installation. Let many many more children and adults experience the elements.- Megha Malhotra, Arts & Education Consultant

I hope I can journey like this everyday in life - looking a little more closely and appreciating the creativity around me! Thank you! - Maura Hurley, Arts Teacher

THE ROOMS
​The journey that we created kept evolving as we moved to a new space and worked with different artists. The duration varied between 45 - 60 mins for each child.In its three versions put together Elements featured the following rooms (spaces)
a) Junk sculpture
b) The Room of Cupboards of Five Senses
c ) Labyrinth 
d) Clay Room
e) The Room of Sounds 
f) Textured Path 
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